Chapter 604 Chapter577-Revealing True Colors
John cleaned up the battlefield and, ensuring there were no threats in the vicinity, planned to return to Styx Town.
His first priority was to make sure that Styx Town was also free from any threats.
In Styx Town, all demons from the Dark Faction had vanished. Most of those remaining were adventurers who had sided with the Dark Faction, and they had not chosen to flee.
They believed that staying might allow them to find some precious weapons.
Besides those aligned with the Dark Faction, there were also neutral adventurers present.
These adventurers were in Styx Town merely because they had set their spawn point there upon entering the game, driven by curiosity rather than an intention to join the Dark Faction.
For those adventurers who had sided with the Dark Faction, John had no hesitation.
He unleashed a large-scale area-of-effect spell right in the center of Styx Town.
With the potent magical damage unleashed, nearly all the adventurers aligned with the Dark Faction were eradicated.
However, for these adventurers, the loss was mainly in levels, which wasn't too significant given the circumstances.
The adventurers daring enough to remain in Styx Town didn't possess particularly strong weapons or capabilities.
Losing a few levels and some non-rare weapons wasn't a significant setback for them.
As for the neutral adventurers, John approached them with more patience, hoping they could provide him with some information.
He approached a magus player whose level was relatively high and asked directly, "In the recent past, have there been any unusual occurrences in Styx Town?"
The magus player, still in shock from witnessing John's recent battle, stared at him with eyes full of fear.
After all, John's combat had been visible to all players in Styx Town, and facing a top-tier player who had just defeated a Devil was understandably terrifying for an ordinary player.
"Don't be afraid now; you haven't sided with the Dark Faction! Since you're not with them, I absolutely won't attack you. After all, we players need to cooperate with each other!"
John's reassurance temporarily eased the magus player's fear, though his voice still trembled with residual fright as he replied, "During the recent battle, everyone was focused on you and that powerful Devil.
We didn't notice if anything unusual happened in Styx Town.
However, I don't think there have been other strange occurrences here.
The most unusual event in Styx Town was your sudden appearance and your attack on the demons here.
And after you defeated the Devil, the demons fled.
"They probably went to look for you, and their failure to find you likely means they encountered some other threat. Our first priority should be to defeat the Abyssal Fearmonger. Once we've overcome the Abyssal Fearmonger, we can plan our next move and figure out why Arsena and Natasha have disappeared."
Though John sensed something was amiss, he wasn't overly concerned about the disappearance of Duke Arsena and Natasha.
He believed that these two powerful members of the Order Faction weren't easily defeated.
Furthermore, even if they had been vanquished, the Northern Myst Empire would surely send more powerful forces in response.
After all, the Empire wouldn't let the matter rest so easily.
Thus, John focused his efforts on the battle with the Abyssal Fearmonger.
Despite the heavy toll the previous battles had taken on her, Shatras continued to fight alongside John.
Meanwhile, back in Storm City, the Mystery Protector was finally ready to reveal his true identity.
He had already discussed a plan of cooperation with Kingserp and informed him of all the actions taken by John and his allies.
Kingserp, coordinating with other Devils of the Dark Faction based on this information, planned a second assault on Storm City.
By this time, Kingserp had successfully persuaded the Flame Knight, who was now positioned outside the gates of Storm City.
Sensing the success of his plan, the Mystery Protector decided there was no longer any need to continue his disguise.
Having resolved to focus entirely on the battle with the Abyssal Fearmonger, John and Shatras continued their concerted efforts.
Meanwhile, in Storm City, the Mystery Protector finally decided to reveal his true intentions.
The Mystery Protector had previously discussed a cooperation plan with Kingserp, informing him of John and his companions' actions.
Kingserp, coordinating with the Dark Faction's other Devils based on this information, planned a second assault on Storm City.
At this point, Kingserp had successfully persuaded the Flame Knight, who had now appeared outside the gates of Storm City.
Sensing the success of his plans, the Mystery Protector no longer saw the need to maintain his disguise.
The Mystery Protector eradicated all the apprentice magi within the Great Library.
After dispatching these apprentices, he headed straight for Duke Arsena's palace, fully aware that controlling Storm City required the destruction of the last defensive magic array within the palace.
The previous failure of the Dark Faction's assault was not solely due to John's intervention.
A more critical reason was the Dark Faction's inability to locate Storm City's most crucial defensive array, allowing the city's defenses to hold until the end of the battle.
Had the defensive array been destroyed at the outset, the Dark Faction's efforts might not have been in vain.
The Mystery Protector was determined not to let his subsequent plans fail.